


Reload

by torinokomachi



Series: Muse's Library [12]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! - All Media Types, Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V, Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal
Genre: Do note that the OC in question is only Red Hat, Friendship, Gen, Granted he kinda got split into two but the point stands, Implied Relationships, Japanese names are used, Major Original Character(s), Male-Female Friendship, Meta, Non-Chronological, Some of these can be pretty shippy, Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V Spoilers, not a full fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-24
Updated: 2019-05-09
Packaged: 2020-01-25 21:35:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,197
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18583054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/torinokomachi/pseuds/torinokomachi
Summary: When Zarc brought destruction, Ray made a plan to stop him. When Ray attempted her plan, she found aid in a red hat duelist.Z-One, however interfered and sent the now split to half souls of the once red hat duelist back in time to make sure the red hat gets stronger when they are to face Zarc once again.(Alternatively: In which "Red Hat" Konami lost against Zarc but refused to give up. The duelist' soul is now split in half and sent back in time by the Z-One of a different timeline to ensure the red hat duelist's victory)(Majorly based on the Tag Force games with some loosely followed details)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So once upon a time, I wrote a fic based on the Tag Force games, inspired by Hiyuusha's own Tag Force fic in Fanfiction.net, but I deleted it because I felt the need to re-read and remember the Yu-Gi-Oh card game rules.
> 
> The idea came back again but I decided to write this idea as something like story notes. A Meta, in other words.  
> Especially since I got fics that I wanted to focus on.
> 
> I added Arc V into this thanks to the Japanese exclusive Tag Force special having the first half of Arc-V as playable partners and made a story out of it that connects it to GX, 5D's and ZEXAL.

 

    * The red hat duelist is known as Konami Kodo (An anagram for the Konami Code and a commonly used name to refer to the Tag Force player avatar) and went through canon Tag Force events.

    * The events go in the order of GX -> 5D's -> ZEXAL and lastly, ARC-V.

      * In this timeline, the 5D's and GX timeline isn't really far apart. That is, around 5-6 years.

      * ZEXAL, meanwhile, takes place a year after 5D's. Specifically, after the battle with Z-One.

      * Arc-V here, takes place around 8-10 years after 5D's.

    * One of the tag force stories mention that Konami is a robot from the 5D's series bad future... and that is the same case here for Konami Kodo. But think of his case to be something like One Punch Man's Genos. He was given robotic upgrades and sent to the past to ensure his survival and mission. Konami remembers nothing about his past before being robotified because his survival is traumatic.

    * Thanks to Z-One's time changing help, they got a cover for Konami that he is orphaned but after middle school, started living and studying on his own before entering the duel academy a month after GX started.

    * But the adventures of this Konami will be elaborated in another day.

    * When Arc-V happened, Konami lost against Zarc, but he refused to give up and let his one loss be the end. Ray sensed that and request his aid.

    * There was, however, a small catch. When Ray made the plan, Z-One from a different timeline interfered, declaring that they're going to need more than some help and Konami will need to get stronger. Ray is suggested to go through her plan... but Z-One will be sending the now split to half soul of Konami into the past and made alterations so that the split souls will grow to be their own individuals, becoming human, and also be stronger. Two Konami's are better than one. And besides, time travel is treated as something of a years inside hours outside kind of thing. It's days in the past but to the future, it could be seconds or under two decades when Zarc finally gets active again.

    * So the two souls are in the past and are also in the same timeline... but in a different time frame. The first half was sent to a time before the GX timeline, while the other is sent to a time before the 5D's timeline.

    * The first half of the soul, by the GX timeline of the Tag Force series, is a teen girl with long black hair. Her appearance is based on an official gender flipped CG of our red hat protagonist in the third Tag Force game. Her name is Shidou Mikoto.

    * The other half, by the 5D's timeline of the Tag Force series. Is a young adult in his late teens who recently moved in to downtown Neo Domino City. His name is Minami Kousuke.

    * Their names are anagrams to a sense.

      * For Shidou Mikoto, the kanji used is 始動 (Shidou) 命 (Mikoto). Shi from the kanji Hajime, meaning start, and dou meaning move. The kanji for Mikoto can alternatively be read as Inochi, meaning life.

      * The Kanji used for Minami Kousuke is 南 (Minami) 光介 (Kousuke) pretty normal, but take out some letters, his name is an anagram for Konami.

      * Shidou Mikoto's name is to represent the restart of Konami's life as new souls, as Shidou Mikoto and Minami Kousuke. And as a second chance to get stronger to face Zarc.




 

 


	2. Tag Force 1-3 (GX): First impressions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First impressions are important. Especially when you're a newbie. Shidou Mikoto introduces herself to her new classmates and fellow dorm mates on her first year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From here on out, Japanese names of the GX cast are used. The same will also apply for 5D's, ZEXAL, and Arc-V.  
> For reference:  
> Judai: Jaden  
> Asuka: Alexis  
> Manjoume Jun: Chazz  
> Sho: Syrus  
> Ryo: Zane  
> Hayato: Chumley  
> Misawa Daichi: Bastion. His surname is still kept in the dubs.  
> Rei: Blair  
> Councilor Samejima: Councilor Shepard  
> Cronos: Crowler

  * Mikoto is enrolled to Duel Academy a month after the curriculum started. Girls would be placed in Obelisk Blue usually. However, in here, the enrollment and rooms for the Obelisk Blue girls dorm are completely full so Mikoto was placed to be a Slifer Red instead. When meeting councilor Samejima, he discussed and apologized about it but Mikoto doesn't mind for the reasons that skirts aren't her thing and she can adapt with living in a dorm full of guys. (There's that issue with Rei but that's for another day) That, and she prefer the color red than blue.

  * On a meta note, this served as my thought to why the Female Konami in Misawa's ending CG from Tag Force 3 wore the Slifer uniform.

  * While Mikoto had become a different individual from the original Konami, the fondness of the color red is because the soul of Konami is reacting to it in his nostalgia.

  * Mikoto went on to the class she is supposed to enter and caught herself hearing Cronos talking about getting a new student and how amazing she is and how good her marks were compared to _a certain slacker_. (Read: Judai)  
“Uh... Hello?” Mikoto awkwardly called out for her supposed teacher. Causing him to turn towards her in his shock.  
How long has this girl been here!?  
“I just got here.”

  * After a moment of reprieve that Mikoto doesn't hear anything... (She did, actually, but chose to say nothing.) Cronos introduced himself and then urge Mikoto to get acquainted with the rest of her classmates.

  * The first person Mikoto saw was Manjoume. However, she conclude that Manjoume is a prick after she got told off that he doesn't bother hanging around with slackers.  
“Manjoume Jun goes from “Okay” to “Jackass” in five seconds flat.” - Shidou Mikoto, May 1st 2XXX

  * The next person she met is Asuka, who is far more pleasant than Manjoume and wants to get to know her as another female duelist. Mikoto thought that Asuka might just be her female best friend.

  * The third is Marufuji Ryo, who didn't say anything else after they introduced themselves. Mikoto is slightly creeped at the constant silence but decided that maybe she should get to know him at another time.

  * And next, is Misawa Daichi from Ra Yellow. Their first impression with each other went well.

  * And finally she got introduced to her fellow Slifer Red students. Hayato, Sho, and Judai. Mikoto got a feeling of Deja Vu at how familiar her first meeting goes with her new classmates. Konami is reacting to all this with nostalgia. Because this is the same order that Konami introduced himself to his Duel Academia friends the first time. Mikoto didn't dwell at that Deja Vu moment as class starts.




 


	3. Tag Force 1-3 (GX): How the second half of the dimensional world shebang happened

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How Judai came to trust and value Mikoto after everything that is going on with the other dimension

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not a chronological one but still in GX (Tagforce 1 to 3). Future entries will be messy but there's a clear timeline for each of them.
> 
> Johan= Jesse Andersen  
> Amon= Adrian Gecko  
> O'Brien= Axel Brodie  
> Edo= Aster Phoenix

  * In the same vein as canon GX, Judai went looking for Johan and got everyone of his friends a lot angry, sad, and basically, they called out on Judai for being selfish... Mikoto didn't say anything. She stayed neutral throughout the whole thing. Because this can go both ways, if she supported Judai right then and there, the others are going to go against her for supporting him right now. If she agreed with the rest, it'll leave Judai pretty heartbroken. So she simply say “No comment”. But doesn't necessarily stay away from Judai.

  * She's just as worried as Judai about Johan but she wouldn't ignore her other friends. But when everyone else are doubting on him, Mikoto kept faith on her best friend and one of her trusted tag partners.

  * And then Judai becomes Supreme King.

  * Jim was the first casualty and everyone else started running... but Mikoto. Dear lord, _Mikoto_ , she didn't follow them. It was after a good distance from the escape that O'Brien, Ryo, and Edo realized that Mikoto wasn't there with them. Even Sho, who was doubtful in all accounts had enough of a mind to make his escape.

“Please don't tell me Mikoto stayed and dueled the Supreme King...!”

  * They went back and found themselves watching the climax of the duel between Mikoto and the Supreme King. It was not an easy match but Mikoto managed to _win_.

  * Unfortunately, a win wasn't enough to get Judai back from the Supreme King's control then.

“Shidou Mikoto! We're getting out of here!”

Mikoto said nothing as she got dragged away by O'Brien but for a moment, Mikoto saw Judai looking pensive at the aftermath of the duel.

Mikoto pull herself out of O'Brien's grasp and call back. “Judai! Let's duel again!”

  * Another Deja Vu moment runs up to her mind. In the original timeline, Konami also did what Mikoto did. But unlike Mikoto, Konami only gave the Supreme King a smile and thought of a silent promise of the same vein as he escaped with O'Brien.

  * Then O'Brien sacrificed himself to bring Judai back and... cue lots of angst. But throughout it all, Sho didn't say anything, while Ryo and Edo tried, it was Mikoto who stayed around Judai no matter what because Judai's a friend and one of her many tag duel partners. And Judai was her first tag partner.

  * This reflects how both Judai and Mikoto (Plus by extension, Konami), dealt with this arc differently. Judai ended up hyper focusing on Johan because of their similarities but he doesn't really leave Mikoto out of it this time around, unlike canon GX where he sort of ignored everyone else but Johan. Mikoto, while she valued her friendships, she also made time for everyone of her friends to show that just because she liked being around Judai and Johan, doesn't mean that she's going to ignore them. So this ends with Judai ending up worse during the whole thing while Mikoto, even as she is shaken by the experience, she'd rather plow through it and kept a strong trust and faith in her friends.

  * Sho stayed behind in the end so Mikoto goes with Judai with the confrontation of a possessed Johan and an eventual tag duel with Yubel and Amon who decided to aid Yubel to the end.

  * Yubel's plans to destroy Judai's spirit only partially failed in that Yubel failed to account on Mikoto because Mikoto seemed non-descript and since Mikoto specialized in Tag dueling, would be considered weak. Yubel did not see the fact that Mikoto can stand and survive for this much time despite all that they tried to pull to break Judai. And Mikoto just had _that_ much loyalty to her friends above all else.

  * Sho, who is slowly restoring his faith in Judai arrived when Judai told Mikoto to apologize for everyone else and pushed her away as he dealt with Yubel on his own.

  * Of course Judai did return a week after the whole shebang but right now, we're talking about what is going on within the dimensional space before his return. Judai and Yubel talked. He talked a lot. Yubel then noticed that Judai also talked about Mikoto.

  * Yubel was pretty neutral to pretty much everyone of Judai's friends but... their opinion of Mikoto improved from possible enemy to comrade that Judai trusted and they can trust Judai to. They can admire and respect Mikoto's trust and loyalty to her friends. And she stayed for Judai after the Supreme King thing too.

  * Meta wise, Since Yubel barely go apeshit on anyone after season 3, I supposed they must have thought of everyone else in a neutral light. And maybe because they had limited interactions... but I feel like Yubel would have put Red Hat in a much better light after that season 3 thing too. So, uh, yeah.

  * In the interval of season 3 and season 4 in this story (And also Tag Force 2 to 3), while Judai slowly draws himself away from everyone else... the only one he did not draw away from completely is Mikoto who stayed in Slifer Red with him. Mikoto is more smarter than he was when it comes to studies, her specialties with tag dueling asides, and she can move on to Ra Yellow or Obelisk Blue since her second year and all but... Mikoto prefered the color red and stayed in Slifer Red. Plus, somoene has to watch over and make sure Judai is okay.

  * So Mikoto brought Judai some missed school work, the school sandwiches (Golden egg sandwiches if she is lucky) and makes sure that he at least ate or be well-rested. And get him to talk a bit. Admittedly, Mikoto will also skip class for the day altogether just to get him up in spirits.

  * Judai still had his cheery bright personality by the time season 4 runs... but the con is that only Mikoto can see this because he is still feeling guilty over everything in the other dimension with Yubel. He is far more restrained when interacting with Sho, Asuka, or anyone else.

  * Mikoto doesn't shy away from the friends she had but she is also prioritizing in getting Judai out of his glum mood in the interval of season 3 and 4. So she still get along with Sho, Asuka, etc and while their friends want to talk to Judai again, at this point, they accept that Mikoto is the only one that can get him to be a functionally working person and not completely shy away from social interactions.




 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tag Force 3 already went on season 4 of GX and the only way you get to know how the second half of season 3 happened in the Tag Force games is through Jaden.  
> On an unrelated note, in Tag Force 2, you also get to know a bit of how the Society of Light arc happened too in Jaden's story... but Aster is the main partner for Society of Light stories if his partner stories are any indication. And Johan's story as your partner in Tag Force 2 focused on the first half of season 3.  
> I didn't show what kind of deck Mikoto (And by proxy, Konami, the original Red Hat) used but on a stand point, she is based on the players, her deck can be whatever you want it to be, so I didn't mention that so you are free to imagine it.  
> Fun fact, Bastion didn't go MIA in Tag Force 3 since he is a first tier partner there. I might delve into it later one of these days.  
> Golden Egg sandwiches are in game items and gifting it to your partner is the fastest way for you to raise their heart level for the first three Tag Force games.


	4. Tag Force 1-3 (GX): Start of the Tag Duel Specialist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mikoto learns that there is a weekly Tag Duel event in the academy and becomes interested in Tag Dueling.

  * Mikoto starts this out after hearing the weekly Tag Duel rings every Sunday of the curriculum. Judai volunteered as her first tag partner for the first tag duel.

  * Mikoto finds that she had fun with Tag Duel's and at the next day of school, she looked for Misawa and asked for tips about deck building since she heard that he builds multiple decks.

  * Misawa was glad to provide her the Deck building 101 Misawa edition and subsequently, they become deck building pals. Mikoto respects Misawa's smarts in deck building and Misawa is happy to know that there's someone who likes deck building like he did. If Mikoto needed tips, she'd always go for Misawa for feedback.

  * Mikoto doesn't have a preferred deck or archtype but the one monster card she finds that she liked to lean onto was Horus The Black Dragon. It's a level monster archetype but she comes to like the monster card.

  * Then Mikoto absolutely blast her way through many Tag Duels during the curriculum and later, the Genex Tag Duel competition in the first Tag Force game, which takes place before the Shadow Riders arc in the first Tag Force game.

  * And thus the fight of who gets to be Mikoto's Tag Partner of the week is born because they want to ace Tag Dueling dammit!

  * Judai always had the first dibs unless Mikoto said otherwise. If not Judai, Asuka, Sho and Manjoume gets a turn. Misawa gets one too. Edo expressed interest in seeing Mikoto take on the Professional Tag Dueling League because during the short time he partnered with her while they are dealing with the Society of Light, he is impressed at how well Mikoto takes to Tag Duels and praised that she had what it takes to take on the Pro leagues. Johan later gets into the competition of who gets to be Mikoto's partner. Hayato also gets to be a partner of hers too before he graduated.

  * On a meta note, getting Judai as your tag partner is really easy in Tag Force 1 to 3. In-game, this is because he eats and liked practically anything from the Sandwiches you can get in-game and can gift to him to raise the heart meter (Except Destiny Sandwich, and ONLY Destiny Sandwich). That's why he gets first dibs most of the time. And Edo _did_ acknowledge Red Hat to be capable of being an equal to him in his Partner story back in Tag Force 2.

  * Back in the original timeline, there was a competition of who gets to be Konami's tag partner after graduation. But that's for another day. (Konami concedes that the rest of his friends can still call on him as a tag partner regardless of the winner though)




 


	5. Tag Force 1-3 (GX): Mikoto (Konami) and Duel Spirits

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Can Mikoto see Duel Spirits? Maybe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Daitokuji= Professor Banner

  * Mikoto (And by proxy, Konami and eventually, Minami Kousuke, the second half of Konami's spirit and 5D's incarnation in this fic), can't see spirits, nor can she hear them. However, she _can_ feel their presence.

  * The first time Mikoto knows that she can feel the presence of Duel Spirits, Mikoto felt a vague presence of there being something else following Judai early in the curriculum (It's Winged Kuriboh). She wasn't sure about what it was and didn't get to talk to Judai about it until much later.

“Judai, I felt like something keeps following you around all the time... do you have a ghost?”

What she didn't expect was for Judai to smile. “You can see Winged Kuriboh!?”

  * Judai was dissapointed that she can't see nor hear it, but was glad to know that she can feel Winged Kuriboh's presence.

  * Winged Kuriboh started to get attached to Mikoto because Judai likes her as a friend and new best friend.

  * Manjoume also got surprised to know that Mikoto can feel the presence of the Ojama's. He thinks it's unfortunate that she can't see or hear them because he wants to dump the Ojama's onto Mikoto's care when he gets annoyed at them. The Ojama's often stick around with Mikoto but ultimately, goes back to following Manjoume most of the time. (And this is before he declared the Ojama's as _his_ Duel Spirits)

  * Sometimes, Winged Kuriboh would often be hanging around on Mikoto's shoulder and nuzzle her neck. Mikoto only felt a ticklish sensation at that.

  * Judai, who can see them, is only smiling that Winged Kuriboh really liked being around his friend. (Much later, he finds himself thinking about what is it about Mikoto's shoulder that felt so comfy for Winged Kuriboh to get attached to her.)

  * When Johan arrived, Ruby started to hang around her as well. Ruby acts like a cat when it's announced it's presence to her, funnily enough. Mikoto can't see nor hear Ruby but if there's something nudging on the legs of her pants and slowly climbed it's way up to her shoulders, she's quick to guess that Ruby is nearby.

  * This is part of the reason why Judai doesn't exactly leave her (And Konami in the original timeline) out in the first half of season 3 during the Tag Force games. As much as Mikoto understood why Judai loves hanging out with Johan, she makes an effort to get Judai to talk with the other students and not leave their friends out completely. With varying success.

  * After the whole dimensional world shebang that is the second half of season 3, Mikoto can partially make out the appearance of a Duel Spirit but she can't fully see them. She does, however, start to be capable in hearing them. This means she can now see and hear Daitokuji's ghost nearby when season 4 is running.

  * In the original timeline, however, Konami, being half-android, couldn't see the Duel Spirit's at all by Season 4. And he can only hear garbled noises from every other Duel Spirit. But he can _still_ feel their presence. Mikoto, being fully human instead of a half-android, could see them. Even if she can't completely see their forms. And in contrast, can hear Duel Spirits clearly. (This also applied to Minami Kousuke but that's for another day).

  * Mikoto's Duel Spirit is Horus The Black Dragon in all it's forms. This is because of her fondness for the monster card that it becomes her duel spirit. Unless they're in a Duel, Horus defaults to it's tiny Level 4 appearance.




 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The bit of Winged Kuriboh hanging around with Mikoto's shoulder is semi-inspired by a Tag Force fan art [here](https://www.pixiv.net/member_illust.php?mode=medium&illust_id=52131530).  
> The 5D's Tag Force games reveal that Red Hat has a Duel Spirit trying to reach out to him but he can't hear it at all.


End file.
